Reggae respect

Bob Marley, who brought reggae music from its native Jamaica to the world in the 1970s, is being recognized with an unusual distinction: A newly discovered species of fish is named for him.

Gnathia marleyi, according to the National Science Foundation, was named after Mr. Marley by a scientist who discovered the fish in Caribbean coral reefs. He explained the name by calling the fish "as uniquely Caribbean as was Marley."

Think of similar possibilities for the Great Lakes region. Local organisms could be named after Toledo native Gloria Steinem, or astronauts Neil Armstrong of Wapakoneta and John Glenn of New Concord. What might be discovered in nature someday for a scientist to associate with that queen of self-deprecation, Lima's Phyllis Diller?

The National Science Foundation notes that President Obama has a lichen named after him. Comedian Stephen Colbert has a beetle named after him. Computer software magnate Bill Gates has a fly named after him. Elvis Presley has a wasp named after him.